Friday, April 17, 2009

Did Obama Jeopardize British Intelligence Gathering and Personnel?

From Times Online... The CIA told the US Justice Department that the enhanced interrogation methods used - including waterboarding (simulating drowning), cramped confinement, wall-standing and sleep deprivation - had been “virtually indispensable” to obtaining “actionable intelligence”. Also on the approved list - though never used - was threatening to leave detainees in a room full of insects.

Some Whitehall officials were hoping that the stark clarity of the legal arguments justifying harsh interrogation would keep the focus of attention on the Washington end of the story. But, as America’s most intimate partner in the intelligence business, there remain concerns of possible legal implications for Britain. Officials said the Government and the intelligence services had had no knowledge of the US Justice Department’s memos until they were published.